For excursions of any length in the Sahara the traveller must have recourse to the camel, the ‘ship of the desert’. The superior trotting camel (mehara) must be distinguished from the ordinary beast of burden, which only walks about 2½ M. per hour, but has wonderful powers of endurance, even in the most trying weather. In the case of the trotting camel the rider sits on a narrow saddle and crosses his feet (with shoes removed) on the animal’s neck. On the broad pack-saddle of the camel of burden is a seat for men, and right and left are others for ladies, for whom a kind of litter (attatouch) also is provided. While the rider mounts the kneeling animal the attendant usually puts his foot on one of its fore-legs to prevent it from rising too suddenly, as it is very apt to do. As the camel rises on its hind-legs first, tilting the rider forwards, it is advisable to lean well back at first, and then forwards, and to keep firm hold of the saddle. Practice alone will enable the rider to get used to the peculiar gait of the animal. The rider’s head should be well protected by a pith-helmet or other efficient covering. Luggage is best carried in two saddle-bags (gibera) of leather or carpet, for which the natives ask 20 fr., or even in ordinary sacks. As to provisions, see p. [97]. Intending travellers are expected to present themselves at the Bureau Arabe before starting, where they may apply for a Saharien or Cavalier du Maghzen (p. [390]) to accompany them. In some cases an escort is considered indispensable.
The Money for a tour in Algeria had better be taken in the form of notes of the Banque de France or the Banque de l’Algérie (for Algeria and Tunisia only) or in gold of the Latin monetary union. Bank of England notes and sovereigns are always readily exchanged in the larger towns and tourist-resorts. Circular notes are less convenient, but have the merit of being safer. Letters of credit addressed to the Compagnie Algérienne or the Crédit Lyonnais also form a safe vehicle for large sums, but the branch-offices sometimes require a week’s notice before paying. The banks and public offices are mostly open at 9–11 and 2–5 only, but the cashier’s office usually closes at 3.
Comfortable first-class Hotels, owned chiefly by French, Swiss, or German proprietors, are to be found at Algiers, Oran, Hammam Rhira, and Biskra. Those of the second class usually make a fixed charge (5 to 12 fr. per day) for room, déjeuner, and dinner. Charges vary greatly, however, according to the season and to the traveller’s nationality. The beds are very good as a rule, and the rooms fairly clean, but the sanitation is often defective and the servants inefficient. Under these circumstances the scale of gratuities is lower than in Europe.
As for food, the staple of almost every repast in Algeria is mutton. The wheaten bread is generally excellent. Among the best wines are the white of Médéa and Mascara, the red and the white of Tlemcen and Staouéli, and the red of Miliana, Margueritte, and Hammam Rhira. At the Cafés, which are often beset by shoe-blacks (cireurs; 10 c.), we may try a cup of ‘Nossi-Bey’ (50 c.), considered a specially good coffee. A cup of coffee or tea at the Moorish cafés costs one sou, but strangers are often charged two (no gratuities). A few good Restaurants are to be found in the larger towns, and food also is provided by the better brasseries. Tobacco and cigars are much cheaper than in France, there being no government monopoly here, but there is a duty of 36 fr. per kilogramme (2⅕ lbs.) on imported cigars.
The Post Office arrangements are the same as in France. A favourite way of sending small parcels is by sample-post (‘échantillons sans valeur’; 12–15 days from Algiers to England), up to 350 grammes (about 12¼ oz.). Inland postage for letters of 20 grammes (not quite ¾ oz.) or post-cards 10 c., foreign 25 c. (for 20 gr.) or 10 c.—Senders of registered letters and telegrams must fill up a form giving their name and address. Postal orders and parcel-post are not recommended.
Drawing or Photographing in fortified places, if not expressly forbidden, is at least inadvisable, nor should maps or plans be too closely studied in public places. With regard to intercourse with the natives, see p. xxv. The police arrangements are generally as good as in Europe.
The Mosques (p. xxv) in Algeria are all state property and may therefore be visited at any time except during prayer. A fee (20–50 c.) need only be given to the custodian for providing slippers or rendering special services. Smoking is forbidden in the forecourts, and of course in the buildings themselves.
The Moorish Baths (ladies’ hours 12–6) may be glanced at in passing.
Books (comp. also pp. vi, 325). Sir R. L. Playfair’s Bibliography of Algeria (London, 2 vols.) goes no further than 1895. Among works on the history of Algeria and its development may be mentioned: M. Wahl, L’Algérie (5th ed., Paris, 1908; 5 fr.); Hanoteau et Letourneux, La Kabylie (2nd ed., 3 vols., Paris, 1893; 25 fr.); R. L. Playfair, The Scourge of Christendom (London, 1884); Graham, Roman Africa, History of the Roman Occupation (London, 1902); Randall Maciver and Wilkin, Libyan Notes (London, 1901). For the history of art: Stéphane Gsell, Les Monuments antiques de l’Algérie (2 vols., Paris, 1901; 20 fr.); W. et G. Marçais, Les Monuments Arabes de Tlemcen (Paris, 1903; out of print). Delightful descriptions of the country and its inhabitants are contained in R. S. Hichens’s The Garden of Allah (London, 1904); Frances E. Nesbitt’s Algeria and Tunis (London, 1906; 20s.); Irene Osgood’s novel ‘Servitude’; Guy de Maupassant’s novel Au Soleil (nouv. éd., Paris, 1894; 3½ fr.); E. Fromentin’s Un été dans le Sahara (Paris, 1857) and Une Année dans le Sahel (Paris, 1859); Col. Pein’s Lettres familières sur l’Algérie (Châlons-sur-Marne, 1871; 3 fr.).